Usually a harbinger of spring, this year Purim day will be a harsh reminder of the lingering winter’s record-breaking snow and cold, with 3-5 inches expected to accumulate on the streets of winter-weary New York.

Alternate side parking (street cleaning) regulations will be suspended Wednesday, March 3, due to snow operations, and Thursday, March 5, for the observance of Purim. All other regulations, including parking meters, remain in effect.

With sadness we inform you of the passing of Mrs. Ethel Botnick, OBM, of Somers, CT, the mother, grandmother, great-grandmother and great-great-grandmother of a large family of Chabad Chassidim, most of whom live in Crown Heights. She was 98 years old.

With sadness we inform you of the passing of Mrs. Tamara Eidelkopf, OBM, of Jerusalem, Israel, the matriarch of a large family of Chabad Chassidim and Shluchim all over the world. She was 85 years old.

When 35-year old Jason Grumet was asked to help read the Megillah this year at his 650-member-family synagogue in Southern California, he felt certain that he would be able to master the texts with ease. Like many others, he’s preparing for the task using Chabad.org’s Megillah Reading Trainer.

Rabbi Avi Richler, Executive Director of Chabad of Gloucester County, NJ, wrote the following op-ed on the implications of Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu’s impending address to congress, which was published in The Times of Israel.

Yossi Berktin, aka ‘Rabbi B,’ is a children’s musician and entertainer from Toronto, Canada. He composed and recorded these two fun and cheerful songs in honor of Purim, titled ‘Boo Hoo Haman’ and ‘Purim Senses.’

Residents please be sure to dig your car out of the snow and move it for alternate side parking today, Tuesday. The DOT and DSNY did NOT suspend Alternate Side Parking, as they have done for last couple of weeks.

PM Benjamin Netanyahu speaking before the U.S. Congress in 2013. Archive Photo.

Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu is scheduled to speak before a joint meeting of congress this morning. The much anticipated speech will be broadcasted live here on CrownHeights.info beginning at 11:00am EST.

Rabbi Yitzchok Minkowicz, director of Chabad Lubavitch of Southwest Florida, delivers his insights on this week’s Parsha – Ki Tisa. This week Rabbi Minkowicz answers the question: Should one do a Mitzvah if he/she is not inspired?

Assistant Rabbi Avrohom Itkin stands in the sanctuary of the Congregation Agudas Achim in Kingston, NY.

As it prepares to celebrate its 150th birthday, the Congregation Agudas Achim synagogue in Kingston, NY, is honoring the dedication and love of a community that has helped it persevere for generations, said Rabbi Yitzchok Hecht.

A South Florida community came together Sunday to remember Rabbi Yosef Raksin of Crown Heights, who was gunned down while visiting Miami one year ago, as loved ones prepare to embark on a mission of peace and healing across America.

The New York Boys Choir, under the leadership of producer Yitzy Bald, has released this fun-filled Purim music video titled ‘V’nahafoch Hu,’ a significant portion of which was filmed in Crown Heights’ Jewish Children’s Museum.

While riding ‘Citi Bikes’ around Manhattan on Sunday, a group of CTeen Shabbaton participants from Ulster County, NY, bumped into New York City Mayor Bill de Blasio, who graciously posed for a photo with them.

Speaking before a crowd of 18,000 at the American Israel Public Affairs Committee (AIPAC) annual policy conference in Washington, DC, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu downplayed any breakdown in relationship between the United State and the State of Israel.

An eclectic standing-room-only crowd of over four hundred women gathered for an evening of remembrance and inspiration in Melbourne last week. The gala event was the result of a collaboration of Rivkie’s Project, a tzedaka organisation established in memory of Rivkie Barber, OBM, and Mikveh Chaya Moushka.